22 cubic feet (5 boxes and approximately 150 loose items)

Materials directly from Virgil M. Brand include his accession and inventory books (32 bound volumes), a printed version of a paper he wrote, “The Objects of Coin Collecting” (1905), two letters to his brother Armin W. Brand along with a reply (1909), a small notebook with coin notations dating from 1907 to 1926, and Chicago Coin Company records. There are also records pertaining to his estate, including correspondence, financial records, legal documents, and an inventory of his library (1926-1937). Materials from after Virgil’s death include Armin W. Brand’s correspondence (1906-1910, bulk 1926-1946), much of it with his brother, Horace L. Brand, on topics such as coin sales, the sale of Brand Company Brewery, and real estate transactions. Along with the correspondence are notes, memoranda, and legal and financial materials. A good deal of correspondence has to do with a court case involving Lake Shore Country Club (1906-1910, 1927-1936). Also present are correspondence and financial records relating to the estate of Armin W. Brand (1946-1950), as well as correspondence and inventories relating to coins and other matters (1948-1967) from Armin Brand’s daughter, Jane Brand Allen. Also includes records pertaining to the estate of Mrs. Leon Harlan Walkins (Bertha Grommes), Jane’s aunt. There are also coin inventories and appraisals (1930s-1950s), auction catalogs from the sale of Brand coins (1983-1990), slides and photographs of Brand coins (late 1900s), rubber stamps used by Virgil M. Brand, and photocopies of Virgil M. Brand’s accession books

Virgil M. Brand papers, 1889-1990. Archives, American Numismatic Society

Coin collector Virgil M. Brand (1862-1926) was born in Chicago, where he eventually worked as a bookkeeper in his father’s business, the Michael Brand Company Brewery. In 1899, after the death of his father, Brand formed the Brand Brewing Company with his two brothers, Horace L. Brand (1868-1962) and Armin W. Brand (d. 1946), and a cousin. He developed an interest in coin collecting in 1889, eventually amassing one of the greatest private collections of all time. In 1907 he formed the Chicago Coin Company, which was owned by Virgil and managed by Theophile Leon. The company closed in 1915, transferring its unsold inventory to Brand. Brand also served as president of the Chicago Numismatic Society. Brand did not leave a will, and upon his death his collection was inherited by his brothers, who began to sell off pieces during the 1930s. Tensions between the brothers eventually had to be resolved in probate court, and in 1937 the Brand estate was divided between them. The brothers continued to sell parts of the collection, but some coins were inherited by Armin’s daughter, Jane Brand Allen. Those coins were sold in a series of auctions conducted by Sotheby’s, Bowers & Merena, and Spink & Son during the 1980s

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